


Thrashing the world (if only for us)

by Seito



Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: 1st gen parents & 10th gen kids, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Families of Choice, Family, Family Feels, Fluff and Angst, Missing Persons, Mystery, Redemption
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-25
Updated: 2017-09-09
Packaged: 2018-12-19 17:24:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 7,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11902557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seito/pseuds/Seito
Summary: There was a baby on his doorstep. Alaude was almost certain this was a prank being pulled by Daemon if only the baby didn't exactly look like him with the coloring of his missing girlfriend. 1st Gen Parents + 10th Gen Kids





	1. Baby on a Doorstep

There was someone knocking on his door. Alaude reached for the gun he kept under his pillow. His apartment was a safe house, a place he only came infrequently to, in between his travels for Giotto, Vongola and CEDEF. He knew exactly how many knew the location of this apartment and knew none of them would be over. Not without calling.

He unlocked the door, jarring it slightly, and peered through the crack. There was no one present. A prank? Kids did stupid things these days.

Until a sound caught his attention and Alaude looked down.

There was a basket on his doorstep. Alaude shut his door, unlocked the chain and opened it the door fully. He looked around, seeing no one around.

Alaude kneeled down, lifting the blanket. A baby. There was a baby on his doorstep. Alaude was almost certain this was a prank being pulled by Daemon. The Mist user has a twisted sense of humor and this kind of thing was exactly what he would have pulled.

Except...

Alaude lightly stroked the cheek of the baby. The shape of the eyes and nose, the disgruntled unhappy pout, they looked like his features. But the black hair… The baby's eyes opened slightly, revealing gray eyes. Tsubame's eyes.

Alaude clicked his tongue in frustration. Tsubame had gone missing three months ago, vanished overnight. He searched high and low for her, turning over every piece of information and found nothing.

And now there was a baby with her eyes on his doorstep?

The twisting scrunched expression alerted Alaude that the baby was gearing up to cry. Gently, Alaude picked up the baby, remembering everything Elena had forced everyone to learn as she was due next month with her own child. He swiftly checked the diaper, hoping he didn't have to change or a cry for food as he had no formula here. Thankfully, the baby had only wanted to be held it seemed, settling in Alaude's arms as Alaude rocked it back and forth.

He picked up the basket, finding several diapers, a can of formula, one bottle and a letter.

Alaude picked up the letter, unfolding it.

_Hello Alaude,_

_Meet your son, Kyoya. Yes go run the tests to confirm it. If you do not wish to accept him, all I request is that you find a loving home for him._

_Tsubame_

Alaude's brow crinkled. The writing got smaller and shaky in the post-script. A small watermark - a tear?

_I'm sorry. Please keep him safe because I cannot._

A son. He had a son. He would confirm it tomorrow, but a son. 'Tsubame,' Alaude thought in frustration. 'Did you think I would not accept this? Was this why you left?'

Alaude never expected to fall in love. He didn't have time for frivolous relationships. Meeting Tsubame had been a twist of fate. She had stopped him on the street, carrying a bouquet of lilies, asking for directions to the nearest coffee shop.

He fell in love with her quiet wit, defiance while ever so polite. She hadn't mind his stoic expressions, pursuit for justice, or even the way the job consumed all his focus. Tsubame bore it patiently, somewhat amused and indulgence. It was calming to be in her presence, far different from the chaos that he found in the others.

Whirlwind romance was a good term to use. They had only been together for nine months before she disappeared. Was it because she had found out she was pregnant? She hadn't looked the part when she vanished. Surely, she would have shown at six months. Did she really think he would have thrown her out on the streets even if that was case?

The weight of the world pressed down on Alaude's shoulders and he felt impossibly tired. Anger ran hot under his skin like lava, thick and heavy. Angry at Tsubame, angry at himself. He looked down at Kyoya who continued to sleep, unaware.

He would make a decision in the morning.


	2. Welcome to the Family

"You reproduced?!" Lampo howled, breaking out in laughter.

"He's so adorable!" Elena cooed, looking half a step from snatching Kyoya out of Alaude's arms.

"I thought I would never see the day," Daemon said.

"The world must be ending," G said.

"How cute!" Knuckles proclaimed.

"He looks just like you, Alaude," Asari said.

Alaude twitched, ready to murder them. This was a mistake. He should have never come here with Kyoya.

"Now, now," Giotto said calmly. "Let's not overwhelm the baby and Alaude."

Alaude growled, recognizing that mischievous glint in Giotto's eyes. His Sky was no better, only showing more restraint than the others.

"Please Alaude?" Elena asked, holding her arms out.

Alaude looked at her. At eight months, Elena was practically glowing. She was looking forward to being a mother (and the melon head was practically preening over the thought of being a father.) He grunted, but handed Kyoya over.

"Alaude," Giotto said quietly, stepping closer. The others gathered around Elena, cooing at the baby.

Alaude clenched his fists, knowing exactly what Giotto was about to ask. "Tsubame is the mother yes," he answered. "I sent for both a maternal and paternal test, but my featuring, her colors. The timing is also correct, even if she never showed any signs of being pregnant before her disappearance."

"Did you find her?" Giotto asked, tone still gentle.

"No," Alaude said. He had been over all the footage he could find this morning. None of the cameras in the surrounding area had caught Tsubame on screen, despite the fact of that someone had knocked on his door confirming that she or at least someone she trusted had delivered Kyoya to his doorstep.

"We'll find her," Giotto said.

Alaude was growing less sure of that. Even with Vongola and CEDEF's connections, it was like she had slipped through the cracks… as if she knew exactly where they were. It worrisome and more than once, Alaude had wondered if she was a spy sent to uncover information on the newest growing power in the mafia.

Giotto hadn't set out to be a mafia boss, but it had happened as he gathered more people in attempt to stabilize and bring sort of peace and freedom to the people on the street. Vongola didn't deal with the seedier sections of the underworld, didn't touch human trafficking, drugs and mindless murder.

Weapons were a different story, but you couldn't fight a war without weapons.

It was a different type of justice then what Alaude was used to, but he could see the appeal and crime rate in this area had significantly dropped as Giotto spread out. That was what had brought Alaude to Vongola, to Giotto in the first place.

"What do you intend to do with him?" Giotto asked.

Alaude shifted uncomfortably. He hadn't been able to make a decision when he first woke. Kyoya was his and as a Cloud he was possessive of what was his. He didn't really see letting Kyoya go.

But this lifestyle wasn't for children. Kyoya had been his for less than a day and the idea of Elena bringing two more babies into this bloody war they were wagering was sobering and horrifying.

"I would like to keep him," Alaude said. Alaude was selfish and possessive and he did not want to let Kyoya go. "If you do not mind the reduction in my duties."

Giotto smiled. "Of course, Alaude. It's no trouble and we will gladly welcome him into the family."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wahhh thank you for your kind words. This plunny has been really fragile, so I'm happy that people are looking forward to it. In case anyone is wondering, this primarily Hibari and Alaude focused, so while the rest of the 10th and 1st gen are around, they're kinda in the background (though Giotto and Tsuna play a larger role).
> 
> Please leave a review.


	3. Happy Birthday

"Happy Birthday Kyoya!"

Kyoya rolled his eyes as Tsuna tackled him in a hug. He grunted at the action, allowing the youngest of his siblings hug him. If Tsuna was denied his hug, he would pout and Kyoya was not going to responsible for that.

"You're nine now!" Tsuna said, excitedly. He grabbed onto Kyoya's hand, tugging him down the hall, where Kyoya knew the rest of the family was waiting.

The dining room door swung open and out came Ryohei and Takeshi who both hugged Kyoya. Kyoya mentally groaned, knowing that his siblings were going to spend the entire day hugging him.

The things he put up for them.

"Get off kids," G called out from inside the dining room. "Remember Kyoya bites when you overwhelm him."

Kyoya glared. He wouldn't bite his siblings! Except for maybe Mukuro. Possibly Ryohei who was so loud. Or Hayato who took to carrying around bombs. Or Takeshi who smiled too much. Fine, everyone except Tsuna and Chrome. His Uncles were no exception either.

He pushed his siblings into the dining room, huffing at their energy.

"Happy Birthday Kyoya."

Kyoya turned to see his father walking down the hall with a small package. "Father," he greeted.

"A package came for you," Alaude said.

That was not surprising. A package came for him on his birthday every year. There was never a card, but Kyoya had an inkling who sent the package.

His birth mother.

Kyoya didn't know much about her. Nothing beyond the facts that her name was Tsubame, she loved lilies, coffee and the color purple, and she left him nine years ago. There was a picture of her, buried deep in Alaude's dresser drawer and he knew he got her colors, the black in his hair and the gray in his eyes. But beyond that, he didn't know.

He suspected that she didn't leave him because she didn't want him. Not like Tsuna's birth mother who fled or Ryohei's parents who dumped him on Uncle Knuckle. She wasn't dead either if she was sending gifts like Takeshi's birth mother. The fact he received a gift and the fact that his father gave it to him was proof that.

And despite the fact that she never met him, she had surprisingly good taste in gifts. The dark purple comforter she sent for his third birthday was still on his bed. The yellow bird plush he called Hibird from his fifth birthday sat on his desk. The tea set for his seven birthday was well used.

He opened the box, revealing a shiny pair of tonfa.  _Oh_.

"I can start teaching you tomorrow if you like," Alaude said.

Kyoya closed the box. "Why did she leave?" he asked.

A flash of sorrow danced across his father's face, looking so strange on him. "I do not know," Alaude finally said. "Do you miss her?"

Did he? To be honest, no. "You can't miss what you don't know," Kyoya said. His birth mother was nothing more than a picture, a name and few facts. He couldn't know her. He wasn't wanting for a mother either. Aunt Elena and Aunt Lavina easily filled the position.

Mostly, he had questions. But the one person capable of answering them didn't seem interested in coming forward.

"Come on you two!" Elena called from inside. "We're waiting for the birthday boy!"

Kyoya set his questions aside. He could think about them later. Right now, his family was more important.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Excellent all the pieces have lined up. The fun starts next chapter. 8D 
> 
> Again, thank you so much for your support. This fic is a little difference than the others, so it's really nice to know that you guys are looking forward to it. 
> 
> Please leave a review on your way out.


	4. Phone Call

**Phone Call**

The sound of a phone woke Alaude. He sprung out of bed, glancing at the clock. Just half past seven. Everyone would be waking up shortly for breakfast.

He answered the call, half expecting it to be one of his subordinates with the information he had requested yesterday.

"Alaude, speaking."

"Hello Alaude."

Alaude gripped the cellphone, nearly crushing it in his hand. A hot white anger burned. He knew that voice. Never forgot it. "Tsubame. Why have you called now?" he demanded. Nine years. Nine years and he had nearly given up searching for her. Nothing ever turned up and aside from the continuous gifts that Kyoya received that he was certain were from her, he had no proof that she even alive.

Tsubame laughed weakly, a touch hysterical. "I wanted to talk to Kyoya."

"Why should I let you?" Alaude demanded. Knowing Kyoya, he probably wasn't even interested in hearing from a woman he never met, the mother who abandoned him.

"Please humor the dying request of the woman who gave birth to him."

That knocked the breath out of Alaude. He staggered, sinking down to sit on his bed. Dying? "Tsubame?"

She just chuckled again. This time he heard the sorrow in her laugh.

"Why did you leave us nine years ago?" Alaude asked, softer, gentler. The question gnawed at him for years. He turned over the last conversation they had, the last days they had spent together. What did he miss?

"I had to be sure," Tsubame said.

"Sure of what?" Apprehension filled him.

"That they would never touch Kyoya. That meant eradicating them off the face of the earth. It took nine years and my life, but they will never crawl out of the hellhole I threw them in. They will never hurt Kyoya or you and for that I will gladly die with a smile on my face."

_What_. Alaude's heart squeezed tight; his mind racing, trying to comprehend. There was a threat against his son and threat he didn't know about? And Tsubame went up against… alone?! His emotions conflicted, mixing between outrage, fear, anger, and confusion. He ran a hand through his hair.

"Tsubame," he murmured, half pleading for her to make sense. He took out paper, jotting down a note.

"Let me speak to Kyoya, please," she asked, breath wispy.

If she was truly dying, Alaude didn't want to be responsible for denying that from her. He flung open the door, nearly running into the maid. Alaude handed her his note, stalking towards the dining room where the kids and the others were most likely already gathering for breakfast.

"I hope I'm not interrupting breakfast," Tsubame said mildly. "It is breakfast, right? Must be, the sun has risen."

Alaude categorized that, mentally filing it away in a desperate attempt to find where she was. If the maid was swift enough, they could get a trace on his phone and pinpoint where she was calling from.

"Does Elena still make pancakes?" Tsubame asked.

"She does," Alaude asked. Elena was pancake duty nearly every week, making all sorts of combinations. Kyoya secretly loved her blueberries ones though he rarely ever asked her to make them for him. (Alaude was partial to her chocolate chip ones.)

He stopped outside of the dining room. For once a deep uncertainty settle in his stomach. "Come back," Alaude whispered.

"If I could," Tsubame answered.

He would move mountains to ensure that she could. Alaude entered the dining room, seeing everyone had arrived, spotting Kyoya. He switched on speakerphone, placing it in front of Kyoya.

"Tsubame is on the phone," he announced.

The room went silent. The adults stared at Alaude while the kids stared at Kyoya. Kyoya merely frowned, sending his father a questioning look.

"Kyoya doesn't have to talk you, you meanie!" Hayato exploded first.

Tsubame's warm laughter came over the phone. "That sounded like a young G. Did G have a kid? I sincerely hope he is as explosive as G is."

"Hey!" G and Hayato protested together. Lavina merely covered her mouth with her hand, hiding her wide smile.

"Why did you want to talk to me?" Kyoya asked, cutting off any further reaction from them. He stared down at the phone, gray eyes piercing.

"I see you've picked up Alaude's blunt and direct manner," Tsubame said. "I just wanted to hear your voice. So say whatever you want. If you hate me, your favorite things, what you did yesterday, any questions you have for me."

"You gave me a pair of tonfa," Kyoya said.

"Oh, I'm not surprised at all that you lead with that. I thought it was a nice compromise. It wasn't a bladed weapon, still close combat enough for Alaude to teach you without using something silly like handcuffs and wasn't a gun," Tsubame said. "Did you like them?"

Well, that confirmed each package was from Tsubame. And there she went teasing him about his handcuffs again too. She had laughed somewhat hysterically the first time she saw him use it and never gave him a reason why she found it so funny. Even Daemon's first reaction had been mild and barely mocking in comparison.

Giotto sent Alaude a look, quietly questioning, orange eyes full of concern.

Alaude tilted his head, sending a silent message that he would explain later. Giotto nodded, intently listening as Tsubame exchanged words with Kyoya. The kids fearlessly interjecting and squabbling over what was said.

"I want to know about you," Kyoya said, voice quiet but firm.

Tsubame fell silent. "Well," she finally said. "I don't like lilies."

Alaude didn't sputtered, though it was nearly so. "You love lilies," he said. She was carrying lilies the first, second and third time he had met her. He gave her lilies many times, saw the fond smile that spread across her face when receiving them. How could she not love lilies?

Tsubame's laugh was slightly bitter. "I just didn't correct you. For the record, I don't like coffee either. My favorite color is purple though."

Their time together was so short that Alaude had very few solid concrete facts about her. It was unsetting to find out that two of those facts were not true. Why would she not correct him about those?

"The tea set I sent you is my mother's. You and I get our coloring from her. My temper runs deep, even if you can never tell looking at me. My favorite flower is myosotis. I love the sound of the ocean. Meeting your father and having you are my happiest memories," Tsubame rattled off.

"Then why did you leave?" Kyoya asked.

Alaude winced. For all that Kyoya said that he didn't care, the question still weighed heavily on his son's mind. Tsuna wrapped his arms around Kyoya, squeezing tight and it said much that Kyoya didn't even grumble over it like usual.

Silence.

"Tsubame?" Alaude asked.

"Hm? Ah, my apologies, it's getting hard to focus. I don't think… is Giotto around?" Tsubame asked, voice growing softer.

"I am," Giotto said.

"I know Alaude is tracing this call. So when you arrive here, there might be two boys about Kyoya's age in the area. A brunette and a blond. Or they might show up at Vongola's mansion. Please don't turn them away. They can tell you more about why I left the way I did," Tsubame said.

Giotto jolted in alarm, sending a look at Alaude. The pieces of  _why_  this conversation was happening and now, were sliding into place for him. "Tsubame, are you-"

"Kyoya, are you happy?" Tsubame asked, cutting Giotto off. "With your father, Giotto and the others. Your siblings sound wonderful."

"Yes," Kyoya said, answer firm and unwavering. He sent a bewildered look to Alaude.

"Good. That's all I ever wanted for you," Tsubame said. "Alaude, I got one more selfish request. Bury me by the sea?"

The phone line went dead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a review on your way out.


	5. Bring Her Home

"Father," Kyoya asked, eyes wide.

"Alaude, what is going on?" Giotto asked.

"She called and told me she was dying," Alaude explained, picking up his phone. "I wasn't going to deny her and Kyoya that chance if it was indeed the case."

The maid burst into the room at that exact moment, waving a piece of paper. "Sir! We got a location."

"We'll take the helicopter," Giotto said. "G, hold down the fort." G nodded in agreement.

"Giotto," Alaude said.

"You're not going alone," Giotto said, picking up his cape. "We'll bring her home."

Alaude grumbled, but bowed his head, grateful. He bent down to Kyoya's eye level. "I'll be back," Alaude said.

Kyoya nodded tightly. "I want to meet her," he said.

"I know," Alaude said.

"We got him," Elena whispered as he and Giotto left to the door.

He would probably never be able to actually tell them, but there were days where Alaude was so thankful he had found his way to Vongola.

-.-.-

The helicopter ride was quiet besides the roar of the engine. He was grateful for it, that Giotto let him stew in his thoughts despite the questions his Sky must have had. Alaude leaned back and closed his eyes, collecting his thoughts.

Tsubame. It had gotten easier to not think about her as the years gone on. Kyoya took up most of his time, and when the twins were born, everyone was dragged into helping Elena. (To Daemon's intense displeasure and Alaude's smug pleasure, infants Mukuro and Chrome was actually calmest in Alaude's arms.)

Tsuna, Hayato, and Takeshi came a year later with Ryohei rounding their little family five years after that. There wasn't time for Alaude to stop and think about Tsubame. As each lead grew cold, he dedicated less and less time to finding her.

She didn't want to be found and Alaude wanted to focus on his son instead.

But to discover that she spent the last nine years fighting against something that was a threat against Kyoya, that renewed an old anger. Why hadn't she told him? Who was she fighting against?

"We're approaching!" their pilot said over their headphones.

Alaude looked out, seeing a sea of green. A column of smoke rose in the distance, weakly burning as if it was already dying.

"I spot a clearing we can land on!" their pilot said, bringing the copter down to the ground.

Giotto jumped out first, eyes glowing orange. "This way," he said, heading north.

Alaude followed after, trusting Giotto's Hyper Intuition to lead them. His heart clenched, knowing that fundamentally Tsubame was already dead. She was fatally injured, they had been too far to even consider rescuing her.

His handcuffs hung loosely in his hands, prepared for any enemies as they trekked deeper into the forest. Something had injured Tsubame out here. He would take no chances.

"You can't die!"

Alaude and Giotto paused, coming across another small clearing. There was Tsubame laying on the ground and two boys gathered around her. The black haired one looked around on guard, a sharp look lurking behind his glasses. The blond boy was leaning over her stomach, hands bloodied and the unmistakable glow of  _Sun_  Flames flickering.

"Who's there!" the black-haired boy called out.

Giotto and Alaude slowly came into view. They both knew better than to startled them.

"We don't mean any harm," Giotto said. "We're from Vongola."

The black-haired boy stared at them, impression stoic. "The swallow flies at night," he said. "What does the skylark say to the sky?"

"A skylark promises to bite the sky," Alaude answered. That was one of Tsubame's teasing quotes whenever she watched him and Giotto spar. Whenever he had asked if she could fight, the swallow quote was what she would stay to him. A whimsical nonsensical phrase she had thrown out. An inside joke she never shared.

"If you can help, then help her!" the blond boy snarled.

Alaude kneeled to the ground, hope exploding inside his heart. The slight but steady rise and fall of Tsubame's chest confirmed it for him. She was  _alive_. He reached out to brush her hair from her face, noticing the scar she had running over her left eye that she hadn't had previously. There were new wrinkles, as if she never got the chance to smile, spending more time frowning.

He swallowed thickly, compartmentalizing. "She looks stable enough to move and take back to the mansion."

Giotto nodded. "Then let's go. Knuckle will be better equipped to help her than any of us." He looked at the two boys. "And who are you two?"

"I like the name Ken," the blond said. "That's Chikusa."

-.-.-.-

Tsubame blinked awake. It was strange considering she hadn't expected to wake up ever again. She struggled to sit up, acknowledging that her stomach was greatly protesting against that action. Being shot hurt like hell.

"Tsubame."

Tsubame looked up to see Alaude at the foot of her bed. He looked… tired. But the last nine years had been kind to him. He barely looked any older than the last time she saw him. "Alaude," she said. "This is Vongola then."

"Tsubame," Alaude repeated. She heard all of his unspoken questions, his frustrations and anger. "What is going on?"

Well she did owe him an explanation. Good intentions or not, she hurt him and Kyoya by walking away. The very least she could do was explain. Maybe she would get to see Kyoya once before they threw her out.

(She took her wins where she got them, no matter how small.)

"To start," she said. "My full name is Regina Tsubame Estraneo. Daughter of Don Gerardo Estraneo. Heir to the Estraneo Famiglia."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> She lives! ahaha 
> 
> Please leave a review on your way out.


	6. Full Circle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Implied/Reference child abuse, rape, human experimentation, suicide. Look, the Estraneo did some crazy things that broke a lot of human taboos and we touch upon it in passing in here. Proceed with caution.

"To start," she said. "My full name is Regina Tsubame Estraneo. Daughter of Don Gerardo Estraneo. Heir to the Estraneo Famiglia. I prefer Tsubame."

Alaude drew in a sharp breath. "You're a mafia princess."

Tsubame gave him a crooked smile. "For what it is worth, yes."

Alaude began to pace. "The Estraneo Famiglia is rumored to be involved in human experiments."

"They were. Under the lead of my father and my husband, Pietro," Tsubame answered honestly.

"Were? You are married?" Alaude asked. The barest glimpse of betrayal slipping through his stormy blue eyes.

"Eleven years and considering he is now dead, I am, very happily, a widow," Tsubame said. More than happy if she was honest with herself.

"Eleven years- Tsubame! Start at the beginning," Alaude said, sitting down.

"To start the beginning you need to know that my father purchased my mother through a human trafficking ring. "Married" her and had a child, me," Tsubame said. She recalled the story her mother had told her, so fiercely angry. She had been taken from her home in Japan; the soft trace of Asian blood that Tsubame carried, the reason for why a Japanese middle name.

"He was furious that she had born him a daughter. He tried again for a son," Tsubame said. "Not knowing that my mother had figured out how to render him sterile." Tsubame supposed she got her violent temper from her mother.

"He tried over and over. Tried with mistresses too. Around my seventh birthday, he realized he was stuck with me. That night my mother successfully committed suicide."

There was a small part that Tsubame couldn't fault her mother for abandoning her like that. If anything, she was bitter that she left without taking Tsubame with her, leaving her in that hell.

"I was female. I was weak. I couldn't manifest any Dying Will Flames," Tsubame explained. "Oh yes, I was raised a mafia princess, raised with the full knowledge of how to kill, be ruthless and how to seduce, but more importantly, raised knowing that I would be married off as soon as I was old enough."

She gripped her sheets, knuckles turning white as a dark and ugly rage screamed inside of her. Her expression remained outwardly calm, her first defense she had learned as a child. The reason why Alaude's stoic nature had never bothered was because she understood the issues of being unable to express deeper emotions. To this day, Tsubame wasn't sure if she ever broke long enough to cry or scream in anger, to do anything beyond lightly smile and laugh.

"Pietro was my father's finest student. He was also seven years my senior and cared nothing beyond his next experiment. I was pregnant not even a four months into our sham of a marriage," Tsubame said.

It took a month into her pregnancy to understand what exactly her mother felt all those years ago and why suicide was such a comforting choice. When there was no escaping the cage but death, it very appealing.

But Tsubame was a survivor.

Alaude growled. The bloodlust that he had well tempered as a youth was flaring up again.

"I bore a son and he wasn't even five minutes old before they took him from me. To make him stronger, to ensure my mother's weak blood hadn't prevailed, to become the greatest strongest Sky the Estraneo famiglia had ever seen," Tsubame said. She remembered seeing him just once, never got a chance to name him, to hold him. They took him. She fought, dug and tore, trying to figure out where they had taken him, what they had done to him.

It took her seven months to break her father's encryption to discover they were  _experimenting_ on him. Trying to augment his muscles, improve his brain functions, ensure he had Sky Flames. Another two months to find which of the many facilities he was being kept at. Another three to break into security, the blueprints layouts, secretly route the supplies she would need, make preparations to flee the country, everything. But by then it was too late.

"He didn't even make it to his first birthday," Tsubame said. ""We need another baby. The last one died," Pietro said. As if I didn't carry my son for nine months, as if I didn't love him despite never knowing him.

"There was no body to bury or none returned to me. So I mourned in my own way. I took the lilies, the same ones my mother loved to burn them, to throw them into the ocean and watch them float away, to do anything to help cope. The coffee was because I wanted the bitter taste to mask the failure that I could only taste in my mouth. I met you on the first day of that mourning and…" she trailed off.

"To be blunt, you were my rebound. You were solid and gentle and I need someone to lean on. You were there and that was more support than anyone had ever given me and I didn't know what to do with it. Then you introduced me to your friends and there was such joy. No matter the hardships you all faced, no matter how much you sniped at each other, no matter how much you want to throttle Daemon, you all stayed together. I always thought a real family should be like that," Tsubame said fondly.

"I was happy, happy to know you, happy to meet you, so happy. Then Kyoya came along and I panicked," Tsubame said.

"Tsubame," Alaude said. A pained expression on his face.

"I watched one son be taken from me, I wasn't going to watch another," she said. "I wasn't willing to drag you and Giotto and Vongola into a full out war against the Estraneo Famiglia. You don't know the kind of weapons they made, the lengths they went to exploit the human body. Biological warfare, the possession bullet, body modifications. I couldn't bare to watch Giotto's dream and goal get tainted like that, couldn't bare to watch you get hurt.

"I had two trump cards up my sleeve. First was the fact that my father and Pietro thought they had beaten me in submission years ago. I played the dutiful daughter well enough. They didn't even question that I was leaving the house every day to see you, didn't even send bodyguards and watchers after me. They were that sure that I would always return, that escaping never crossed my mind.

"Second was this." There was a flash of indigo and suddenly snow began to fall.

"Mist Flames," Alaude said, grasping the snowflakes and watching his hand pass through it.

"My mother taught me to keep my cards close to my chest," Tsubame said. "And I learned a lot from watching Daemon throw around his illusions all over the place like a child throwing toys. It's fairly amusing."

"This was how you disappeared overnight and why you didn't show any signs of being

pregnant," Alaude said.

"Yes," Tsubame said. "I planned and planned. I found a doctor that would deliver Kyoya and then remove my uterus and ovaries. I wore Mist Flames over my body. No one was expecting me to be pregnant so they weren't expecting anything different. Once Kyoya was born, I dropped him off at your apartment.

"Then I went back and took all the information I discovered a year earlier and laid out a plan. I started off with lab accidents, minor data edits, gas explosions and contamination outbreaks. It got written off and ignored.

"Somewhere around the third year, paranoia kicked in and my father started paying attention to the fact that all of his facilities were mysteriously going up in smoke. So I switched to more active sabotages. Bombs, data corruption, active assassinations and no one was any wiser that I had any hand in it.

"About a year ago, my father pulled everyone back into the main mansion. Everything neatly lined up and all within arm's reach. As heir, he had to teach me every single safeguard, trap and defense our mansion had. I knew exactly what I need to do to bring down the roof on everyone's head.

"I struck at three in the morning. By then I had poisoned most of the scientists. The coffee pot always remains a popular choice, no matter the hour. The rest was spread through the vents. I slit Pietro's throat as he came into the bedroom and started moving. I freed the 'experiments' who could still move, who still wanted to escape. Only those two boys had any willpower left. Bombs took care of the rest.

"My father had retired early, a deviation from his schedule and paranoia meant the air circulating in his room was separate than rest of the mansion. So by the time I put the poison down, it had missed him. He was furious."

A wide smile spread across Tsubame's face as she remembered how red in the face her father had become. The way he screamed betrayal and traitor to her face. As if he hadn't failed her first.

"He shot me in the stomach before I managed to return the favor and placed a bullet in his head," Tsubame said. "I stumbled outside, pushed the button of the final explosion and called you. Here we are."

Alaude closed his eyes and blew out an angry breath of air. "You should have told me," he said.

Tsubame shrugged, weakly smiling. "I am not used to asking for help," she said.

The entire conversation so far was going far better than she expected. Alaude was angry, she expected that. But beyond the frown on his face and the bloodlust in his eyes, there wasn't any shouting or attempts to kill her.

Alaude moved closer, reaching out to touch her face, stopping just short of touching her skin. She appreciated that. She never minded when Alaude had done it, but to be touched like that, without her consent, she had enough of that. Her skin still crawled to this day, a feeling she had never been able to scrub clean.

"And the scar?" he asked.

Tsubame's lips twitched in a smile. "My father was most displeased to find out I had rendered myself sterile. By the way, cloning experiments are horrible things." That had been a  _fun_  experiment to sabotage.

"I am frustrated that I did not get a chance to kill them myself," Alaude said.

"I took the time to mutilate their bodies," Tsubame offered. Repeatedly and deeply. Honestly, there was nothing left of both Pietro and her father by the time she had sliced and cut them into tiny pieces.

Alaude stared at her, eyes intense. "And what do you plan on doing next?"

Tsubame's gaze dropped down, unable to look him in the eye. Uncertainty crept into her heart as she hesitated for a brief moment. "I do not have a right to ask this," she said, throat closing, choking out the words. She looked up, digging for the resolve that had carried her throughout her life.

"But I would really like to stay this time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's Tsubame's story. We're wrapping up this fic nicely. 
> 
> Please leave a review on your way out. :3


	7. Mother and Son

Kyoya solemnly looked at the door before him. Behind it was supposedly his mother: Tsubame. He should go in. He should. Ever since he pieced together who she was and acknowledging that was missing (for reasons he didn't know), he had wanted to meet her. She was finally here. He wanted…

"Kyoya?"

"Tsunayoshi."

Tsuna came down the hall, stopping to look at the door that Kyoya was staring at. He blinked, eyes flashing orange for a brief second. "Why don't you go inside?" Tsuna asked.

"Hn."

Tsuna huffed and grabbed Kyoya's hand. He pushed open the door, entering the infirmary room before Kyoya could stop him.

"Hello!" Tsuna chirped.

Kyoya's youngest sibling was going to be the death of him at this rate.

"Hello," Tsubame greeted from her bed with a wry smile. "Are you Tsunayoshi?"

Tsunayoshi scrambled into a chair. "Yes!"

Tsubame hummed. "Your papa wouldn't stop talking about you yesterday."

Tsuna scrunched his face. "Papa," he moaned.

She laughed, turning to look at Kyoya. "Hello Kyoya."

"Hello -" Kyoya sputtered to a stop, unsure how to address her. She was his mother, but he didn't know her. It felt too out of place to just call her mother.

"You don't have to call me mother if you don't want to," Tsubame said softly. "I lost that right when I gave you up."

Kyoya nodded, not trusting himself to stay anything. "Why did you leave?" he asked instead.

Tsubame patted her bedside. "I will tell you a story," she said. "You will figure out some of the players and some of the roles, but I pray that it will be many years before you ask me for the full truth. You're allowed your childhood."

Kyoya took a seat on her bed. Tsuna followed after him, plopping into Kyoya's lap, eyes glowing orange. Kyoya knew that look. He wouldn't be able to get him to leave which was bad. Kyoya got the feeling, based off the grim look on his father's face, that his mother's story wasn't very nice.

Tsubame merely looked amused. "You're going to make a powerful Sky when you grow up," she remarked. She waved her hand, a bird materializing. "I think a good story has some visual effects."

"You're a Mist?" Kyoya said, mildly betrayed. She was the same type of Flame as Mukuro? (Of all his siblings, Mukuro was the one Kyoya wanted to throw out the window. Except Chrome would cry, Aunt Elena would be disappointed and Tsunayoshi would pout and Kyoya had no resistance to that.)

"You take after Alaude," Tsubame said with cheer. The bird flew off her hand, flying around Tsuna's waving hands.

"Let's start off with the story of a swallow and her birdcage."

-.-.-

Alaude sank into the couch, leaning back, eyes falling close. He was weary, the toll of the last couple days finally wearing down on him.

"You should rest."

He opened his eyes, seeing Tsubame standing behind the couch. "And you should be resting."

She circled around, taking a seat next to him on the couch. "I put Kyoya and Tsunayoshi to bed. They had fallen asleep on me. Thank you for allowing me to see them."

"You're Kyoya's mother and everyone knows to trusts Tsunayoshi's instincts," Alaude said. "And as far as Giotto is concerned, you're just a displaced family member who finally made it home."

She lightly chuckled at his words. "And you?" Tsubame asked.

He laid his hand over hers. "I wanted you to come back," Alaude said. They still had plenty left to discuss. It would take time, they both knew it. Nine years of separation and the secrets that was hidden between them. But despite it all, Alaude wanted her back, wanted her here, wanted to get to know her properly this time.

Tsubame smiled. "I will stay for as long you will let me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's a wrap. The next chapter is an epilogue/missing scenes. :3 
> 
> Please leave a review on your way out.


	8. Missing Scenes

Tsubame was brewing herself tea when Giotto stumbled into the kitchen, looking as if he hadn't slept at all.

"Is there coffee?" Giotto asked wearily. The bags under his eyes were dark, hair tousled as if Giotto had been gripping at it.

"Just tea," Tsubame said. "You look like you need more rest."

Giotto groaned and rubbed a hand over his face. "I've trying to work out negotiations with the Rossi Famiglia and Acerino Famiglia all night long."

Tsubame blinked. "Send the Rossi Famiglia a box of the finest Cuban cigars you can find and any bottle of red wine dating from the year the 1920s. Don Antonio has expensive tastes and won't deal with anyone who isn't willing to prove their monetary worth. He also has a vicious temper and likes his woman young to an almost… unacceptable level. Acerino Famiglia run the largest human trafficking ring in southern Italy. My father was a frequent shopper. Don Stefano looks like a meekly man and he uses his assuming appearance to hide a cunning mind."

Giotto stared at her. "How do you know all of this? Alaude didn't even have that kind of level of intel. He knew the Acerino Famiglia dealt with human trafficking, but not Don Stefano looks meekly. Or that Don Antonio likes red wine."

"Failure or not, I was my father's only heir. Know what you can about your allies, enemies and neutral parties. It was expected that I would know it," Tsubame said. She paused, thinking about it. "... It occurred to me that no one here is actually mafia raised, are they?"

"Not in the upper echelon way that you have been," Giotto said. "Please what can you tell me?"

Tsubame looked at her small pot of tea. "We're going to need something much stronger than tea if we're going to have that conversation."

"I have brandy in my office."

"I prefer scotch. G hid some in the hallway closet by the ballroom. Let's go liberate it."

"I'm a little terrified that you know where G keeps his liquor."

-.-.-

Tsubame looked to one side of the room where Lavina and Elena stood. On the other side, Nana and the Sasagawas stood.

The tension in the room was palpable. Any other time Tsubame probably would have found it funny, but the serious nature of their situation left little humor. They had been thrown into the future, to discover their children fighting a war that they the adults had failed to prevent. She had little patience for this.

Of course, they were (stupidly in her opinion) fighting over the children, pointing fingers at each other. Accusation about abandonment were made, while Nana threw back the  _mafia_  as a reason to run.

"I feel I should not choose side," Tsubame said quietly. "Because at the heart of the matter, I did abandon my son." It had been five years since she came back, from her original point of view. (Not counting the ten years they had been displaced into the future.)

"So, you think because you went crawling back that you're somehow better than us?" Sasagawa Miyako sneered.

Tsubame didn't bat an eyelash despite the snarling dark rage roaring inside of her. "I left my son to keep him safe, to dismantle an entire famiglia who wanted to experiment on him and raze everything and everyone who wanted to harm him to the ground. Why did  _you_   **leave**  your son behind?"

-.-.-

"Is everyone ready?" Giotto said. "Today we infiltrate Irie Shoichi's base to see if we can capture Byakuran's right hand man."

"You won't need to," Tsubame called out from the door.

"Everyone turned to look at her. "Mother?" Kyoya asked.

Tsubame's serene expression didn't falter as she looked at the older version of her son. "I'm so pleased you took after me just a little. I was going to torture the poor boy before he threw out an insane plan that sounds exactly like something that Tsunayoshi would cook up. He also said you knew about it."

"You didn't," Alaude said.

"Didn't what?" Tsubame said, still looking the picture of innocent. "Take a look at the map that Kyoya provided, use it to break into the base, kidnap their leader and kill the Funeral Wreaths? I may have lifted several tons various toxins from our inventory. Coffee pots, bathrooms and water lines they still remain quite popular."

"...Impressive. I had forgotten you were capable of that," Kyoya said.

"Five years out of practice doesn't mean I forgot," Tsubame said. "Did you expect me to do anything less? People are trying to hurt our family. I take offense!"

"Please stop doing things by yourself," Giotto asked. "Take someone, anyone with you."

"I'm a little insulted you didn't ask me to come with you," Daemon said, looking peeved.

"Tsubame," Alaude said.

Tsubame shrugged. "Before I forget, the rings I collected are in the bag in the corner. They're fakes. Very well made fakes. If the boy's story is to believed, Byakuran has fooled everyone as far the Mare Rings go."

-.-.-

"Happy Birthday Kyoya," Tsubame said.

Kyoya felt a jolt of happiness that his mother was physically here to present him with his tenth birthday gift. He accepted the small box, pulling off the cover.

Inside the box was a chirping yellow baby bird.

"You mentioned you really like the stuff animal version I sent you. I thought you might want a chance to raise the real thing," Tsubame said.

Kyoya looked up at her in wonder. He loved small animals. "Thank you, mother."

She blinked at him, startled. Oh.  _Oh_ , that was the first time he called her mother, wasn't it? He stared at her, waiting for her reaction.

Tsubame smiled. "You're welcome, Kyoya."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahaha I decided against writing the Future Arc (because it's coming up for wwbtf), but I had some scenes that really stayed with me heh. And look the first time Kyoya called Tsubame mother.
> 
> Thank you for sticking with this story. (*^▽^*)
> 
> Please leave a review on your way out!

**Author's Note:**

> This story is completely written. It has 7 chapters plus a bonus extra chapter (total of eight). 
> 
> Please leave a review. I worry about this story. ahaha...


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